July 01, 2016

As we turn the calendar to July, it’s time to take a look back and evaluate the Phillies skipper. Early on, the Phillies were far surpassing their extremely low preseason expectations with a 24-17 record. Now, they stand at 35-45 following the first three months of the season. So how has Pete Mackanin influenced the path the Phillies have taken to get here?

Probably the most impressive part of Mackanin’s season is his fearlessness when it comes to making the lineup. The Phillies had been slowly getting over this problem of not wanting to let go of the 2008 World Series core. For a while, the organization has acted as if the players were owed something. Now, it’s just Ryan Howard and Carlos Ruiz who remain on the roster from the 2008 squad and Mackanin hasn’t shown any apprehension in benching them.

Howard has started just 50 games this season, but just two of them have been against a left-handed starting pitcher. Tommy Joseph, a right-handed hitter who debuted this season as a first baseman, has started 31 games, but just nine of them have been against a southpaw. Either Howard or Joseph has started at first base in 73 of 80 of the Phillies’s games this season. In those 73 games, Joseph has started in 81% of the games against lefties. However, it hasn’t been a straight lefty/righty platoon because he’s also started in almost a third of the games against righties. At catcher, Cameron Rupp has started over Ruiz in 49 of the 80 games. Mackanin has gone with the hot hand in the lineup regardless of the name.

Mackanin also did an excellent job naming a closer this season. Jeanmar Gomez, who doesn’t exactly have closer stuff and was just 1-for-4 in save opportunities in his five seasons prior to this one, led all of the majors in saves for a good portion of this season. Now, he’s 21-for-23 in save opportunities with a 1.33 WPA. His 5.78 +WPA is fourth-highest among all relievers.

On the base paths, the Phillies have been successful in steal attempts just 55% of the time. That’s the second worst rate in the MLB. They’ve been caught stealing 26 times, third most in all of baseball. Perhaps the strongest critique of the skipper of the second-worst offense in baseball is that he shouldn’t be wasting so many base runners.

It’s no secret that the Phillies aren’t exactly a World Series contender just yet, but it’ll be interesting to see if Mackanin can lead the Phillies to scratch their way back towards .500 and stay a relevant team in baseball.

September 18, 2015

The Phillies began last week by splitting a four-game series with the Cubs. After being swept in a double-header last Friday, the Phillies proceeded to win the next two. The following series, however, featured Washington sweeping Philadelphia. The Phillies finished the week 2-5 and head into the final stretch of the season. Let’s take some time to analyze the calls from the dugout steps and manage Mackanin.

Williams in the Bullpen: Jerome Williams was moved to the bullpen on August 28 after starting 21 games for the Phillies this season. Last week, he made two relief appearances in which he threw two innings and did not allow a run or a hit. In his seven relief appearances this season, Williams has a 2.53 ERA with a 1.03 WHIP in 10.2 innings pitched. He has statistically been much more successful in this role than in his role as a starter.

Ruf Week: Darin Ruf has been a part of a platoon for most of the season, playing the majority of his games against left-handed starting pitchers. In fact, Ruf’s OPS against left-handed pitchers this year ranks fifth among all Major League players with at least 99 plate appearances. Last week, however, Ruf played three of his five games against a right-handed starter. He went 1-9 (.111) with his only hit coming in Wednesday’s game off lefty Gio Gonzalez.

September 11, 2015

One win last week. Five losses. The Phillies were swept in Fenway before taking just one of three in a home series against Atlanta. Their five losses saw an average of over seven runs allowed per game by Phillies pitching. However, Philadelphia’s one win last week was indeed a shutout. It seems the bits of optimism that fans were finding not long ago have just about disappeared entirely after this week. Let’s take some time to analyze the calls from the dugout steps and manage Mackanin.

September Sees New Faces: Pitchers Ken Roberts and Nefi Ogando made their Major League debuts in Wednesday’s game against the Braves. The Phillies have now used 49 different players this year. In fact, the Phillies currently have thirteen players on their active roster with rookie status. That’s good for second most in the Bigs.

Roberts, selected off waivers by the Phillies at the end of August, had already pitched in nine games for the Rockies in 2015. Ogando, on the other hand, is one of ten players that have made a Major League debut this season in a Phillies uniform. In 45 appearances between AA Reading and AAA Lehigh Valley this season, Ogando carried a 2.86 ERA with a 1.317 WHIP and 1.77 K/BB rate. On Wednesday, Ogando allowed three hits and two earned runs in one inning pitched.

Pinch Me, I Must Be Dreaming: In a pinch-hit appearance, Brian Bogusevic went yard in the fifth inning of Monday’s game. He became the eighth different Phillie with a pinch-hit homerun this season – a franchise record. It was also the Phillies’ ninth pinch-hit homerun, which leads the league. The team is just two pinch-hit homeruns short of the franchise record of eleven, set in 1958. Another example of the manager calling the right names off the bench at the right times, something we’ve seen a good amount of this season.

Mackanin’s Final Audition: With just twenty-two games left in the season, Mackanin may be in his final days as Phillies manager. After an impressive stint of success following the All-Star break, things have regressed to the norm in Philadelphia. The Phillies are 2-8 in their last ten games. The team was eliminated from playoff contention last Wednesday and may not see Maikel Franco again in 2015. With plenty of potential 2016 and 2017 Phillies expecting a September tryout, it’s likely winning ballgames has fallen even deeper on Mackanin’s list of priorities. Still, if Mackanin wants to maintain his position with the club, he must continue to show competitiveness on the diamond in these finals weeks.

September 04, 2015

Last week began with the Phillies taking two of three against the Padres. Despite falling to the Mets in the following series, they were able to pick up a win on Tuesday. The win snapped a ten-game losing streak against the Mets. A 3-3 week is nothing the Phillies should be hanging their heads about at this point in the season. Let’s take the time to analyze the calls from the dugout steps and manage Mackanin.

Williams Saves the Day: On Friday, Jerome Williams became the first Phillies pitcher to start a game and record a save in the same season since Nelson Figueroa in 2010. Williams is 4-10 with a 6.09 ERA this season while starting 21 games for Philadelphia.

After holding the Padres to two hits and just one run across seven innings, starting pitcher Aaron Nola left Monday’s game with a 2-1 lead. Jeanmar Gomez, Luis Garcia and Elvis Araujo had each pitched in the three games prior to Monday’s game. Six relief pitchers threw Sunday. In response, Pete Mackanin decided to bring in Jerome Williams in relief for the first time this season. Williams finished the game by way of two perfect innings and earned his second career save (his other was in July 2012).

Asche in the Apple: Last week’s games concluded with a three game road series against the Mets. Aaron Altherr started the series’ first two games in leftfield, while Darnell Sweeney started the last. Cody Asche, who was hitless in his last fifteen at-bats entering the series, did not start a game in New York despite his established success at Citi Field.

In his last seven games at Citi Field prior to the series, Asche was hitting 10-21 (.476). In his career, he was 16-48 (.333) at the same ballpark.

The Phillies’ starting leftfielders were 2-13 (.154) against the Mets last week. Perhaps this series would have been a good opportunity for Asche to break out of his slump. He did manage to get a hit in one of his three at-bats off the bench on Wednesday.

September 03, 2015

The Phillies have played better since Pete Mackanin has taken over the helm following the resignation of Ryne Sandberg. Mackanin, currently the interim manager, is being evaluated for the full-time position and his connection to his players, most notably the young ones, has caught the attention of plenty of people. He's earned the respect of the veterans, something Ryne Sandberg never seemed to have, and gets the best out of the young guys fighting for a place in the Phillies future.

While Mackanin hasn't made too many head scratching managerial decisions in his short tenure, one decision he made last night may have cost the Phillies the game. The Mets have won 14 out of 16 this season against the Phillies and they jumped out to a 6-0 lead in Wednesday's game, chasing rookie starter Aaron Nola from the game after four innings. The Phillies began to chip away and cut the deficit to 7-4 in the seventh inning. Darnell Sweeney homered and then Cesar Hernandez walked. After the Mets called a lefty from the bullpen, Odubel Herrera singled to put runners on the corners for the Phils with just one down.

With Ryan Howard due up, Pete Mackanin opted not to pinch-hit for the former MVP, but rather have him face left-hander, Sean Gilmartin. Though Darin Ruf had been used earlier in the game, the skipper could have gone with rookie extra-base hit machine Aaron Altherr or even Jeff Francoeur, who has been very effective in pinch-hit roles. Howard ended up grounding out into an inning-ending double play.

According to CSNPhilly.com, Pete Mackanin and Ryan Howard had a one-on-one meeting last month, when Pete told Ryan that he was going to start playing Darin Ruf when the team faces a left-handed starter. Also mentioned during the meeting was that Mackanin said he would not pinch-hit for Howard if a left-hander came into the game. There's the answer as to why there was no move made.

“I told him I wasn’t going to pinch-hit for him when we had our discussion,” Mackanin said. “I’m not going to play him against lefties, but I’m not going to pinch-hit for him.”

When pressed, Mackanin said it was a respect thing.

“Pretty much. He’s been hitting against lefties for a long time and I’m not going to be the one to pinch-hit for him,” Mackanin said.

Having a mutual respect for your players is one thing, but the smart decision there, no matter what, is to match up as best as possible against the left-hander. Ryan Howard was not the best option there for the team to win. This season, Howard is hitting just .137 (13-for-95) against left handers, striking out 37 times and tallying just five extra-base hits.

Over his career, Ryan Howard has a .220 average against lefties compared to his .284 line against right-handers. Last night, he went 0-for-4, leaving three men on base in the Phillies 9-4 loss.

August 28, 2015

The Phillies won the first three games of last week against the Marlins before falling pathetically to the Mets in each of their four matchups. The Phillies were outscored 40-21 in the four-game Mets series. Positively, the Phillies did manage to score an average of almost five runs per game across all of last week. After a 3-4 week, it’s time to analyze the calls from the dugout steps and manage Mackanin.

Francoeur in a Pinch: In Wednesday’s game, Jeff Francoeur was called to hit for Hector Nerris in the bottom of the eighth and down 6-3. The at-bat resulted in a soft liner to centerfield scoring Cameron Rupp. It was Frenchy’s Major League leading 10th pinch-hit RBI this season. This season, Francoeur is 10-22 (.455) with a 1.117 OPS as a pinch-hitter. In pinch-hit situations under Pete Mackanin, Francoeur is 4-11 (.364) with a homerun and four RBI’s.

Contrary to his career numbers, Francoeur, who hits from the right side of the plate, has hit right-handed pitchers significantly better this season than left-handed pitchers. Wednesday’s pinch-hit was against right-hander Tyler Clippard. It was Francoeur’s ninth at-bat opposing Clippard and just his first hit.

Catching by Committee: In last week’s seven games, Cameron Rupp was the starting catcher in four of them and Carlos Ruiz in the other three. The platoon behind the dish is nothing new under Mackanin. Since Mackanin took the managerial job in June, Rupp has started 28 games and Ruiz has started 25 despite Rupp considerably outperforming Ruiz.

Rupp’s batting average is almost 40 points higher than that of Ruiz in 2015. In the last 30 days, Ruiz is 9-49 (.184) with no homeruns. In the same span of time, Rupp is 17-52 (.327) with five homeruns. In fact, Rupp is 9-20 (.450) in the last 10 days. In spite of Rupp’s recent statistical domination relative to Ruiz, Mackanin continues to split their playing time.

August 21, 2015

For the first time since the All-Star break, the Phillies were swept by another team. Beginning with last Friday, the Phillies lost three of three to the Brewers, then split a two-game series with the Blue Jays after a day off and lost last night’s series opener in Miami resulting in a 1-5 record last week. Let’s take some time to analyze the calls from the dugout steps and manage Mackanin.

Utilizing Araujo: Elvis Araujo has not allowed a hit in any of his last 10 appearances. In that span, opposing hitters are 0-25. The longest hitless streak by a reliever this year was 10.2 innings by Hector Rendon of the Cubs, but Araujo’s streak currently stands at 8.1 consecutive innings. Mackanin has thrown Araujo in 16 games (15.2 innings) in 47 team games since taking over as manager, including 1.2 innings in 3 appearances last week.

Herrera in the Three-Hole: Odubel Herrera has batted third just nine times this season, including each of the Phillies’ last seven games. Last week, Herrera hit .429 with a 1.091 OPS in six games as the team’s new three-hole hitter. He has now hit safely in 20 of his last 21 games (.356, 31-87).

Galvis Bunts: Mackanin called for a Freddy Galvis bunt in the top of the second inning of Friday’s game. It resulted in Galvis’ fifth bunt for a hit this season, which ties for seventh in the National League, and fourth since August 2.

Final Curtain Call for Chase in Philly: Mackanin gave Utley a scheduled day off on Wednesday, the same day Utley had been traded to the Dodgers. The 26,426 fans in attendance that night chanted for Utley to be put in the game so that they can see their hero play one last time. Mackanin claimed to have been tempted to use Utley as a pinch hitter in the eighth inning, but decided against it to avoid “anything crazy happening.” After the Phillies 7-4 victory, Utley tipped his cap to the fans one final time as he walked off the field.

August 14, 2015

The Phillies began last week with a sweep of the Padres, but struggled against Arizona. The Diamondbacks had back-to-back 13-run games to give the Phillies just their second series loss since the All-Star break. Philadelphia finished 4-2 on the field last week, but let’s analyze the calls from the dugout steps and manage Mackanin.

Utley Leading Off: Upon Chase Utley’s return from injury, Mackanin immediately slotted him into the lineup in the leadoff spot, a place he is far from familiar with. Before last week, Utley led off in just two of his 1,544 career games. As the leadoff hitter of any inning, Utley has slashed .257/.329/.458 with 47 homeruns in 1,047 career at-bats. In the four games Utley started last week, he led off and went 6-16 with an RBI.

Giles Saves Four: In each of the Phillies’ four victories last week, Giles was credited with a save, including three straight games from Friday-Sunday and one of the four-out variety on Wednesday. Since Giles has taken over the closer role left vacant by Jonathan Papelbon just 15 games ago, he has been successful in each of his already seven save opportunities and has allowed just a single run.

Relying on the Bullpen: Mackanin had a short leash with his pitchers last week, and often justifiably. Jerome Williams was the only starter to go deeper than six innings into a game, but David Buchanan couldn’t even last two. The bullpen had to average a full four innings pitched per game.

In last week’s six games, the starting pitchers gave up 28 earned runs in 31 innings (8.13 ERA) while allowing 49 hits and 7 walks (1.806 WHIP). The bullpen allowed 16 earned runs in 24 total innings (6.00 ERA) and were victim to 26 hits and 4 walks (1.250 WHIP).

Buchanan and Aaron Harang did not help the starters’ case. The two combined to allow 19 earned runs in just seven innings pitched (24.43 ERA) and allowed 23 hits and three walks (3.714 WHIP) in their outings.

Mackanin utilized his bullpen at a high rate last week, resulting in the Phillies debut of Adam Loewen. Mackanin gave Loewen, who hadn’t pitched at the Major League level since 2008, his chance to prove himself in the Harang and Buchanan losses. In the team’s four wins, the bullpen managed not to blow any lead.

August 07, 2015

The Phillies managed to put a rare five runs across the board in the first inning against Cy Young Award candidate Zack Greinke last Thursday, yet somehow found a way to lose the game 10-8. The team went 3-3 this past week, but there was room for plenty of optimism in the losses, such as lighting up Greinke. Since the break, the team’s been playing great on the field, but to analyze the calls from the dugout steps, let’s take some time to manage Mackanin.

Playing the Platoon: Since June 25, the Phillies have faced eight right-handed starting pitchers and just three left-handed starters. Domonic Brown, since the same date, has slashed .316/.333/.632 with 3 HR and 13 RBI raising his season batting average 23 points. Despite Brown playing perhaps the best he’s played all season, Mackanin has stuck to his platoon plan.

In the 36 games Brown has started this year, 31 have been against a right-handed starters.This past week, the Phillies have faced lefties Alex Wood and Brett Anderson and in both games righty Jeff Francoeur has gotten the nod in right field. Similarly in left field, Cody Asche started against each righty last week, but Darin Ruf was selected to start against the lefties. Both players have outstanding numbers since June 22. The plan has worked so far.

Prior to the trade deadline, the Phillies averaged 3.4 runs per game. From the deadline until the beginning of last week, that number had risen to 4.5 runs per game. In the six games the Phillies played last week, they were scoring a very impressive 6.7 runs per game. Whether or not Mackanin will buy into Brown’s recent hot streak or ditch any platoon method is still in question, but the offensive strategy is producing as is.

Four-Out Save: In Tuesday’s game against the Dodgers, the Phillies held a 5-1 lead entering the eighth inning. Jeanmar Gomez allowed three hits in the inning, including a two-out RBI double from Carl Crawford that cut the deficit to three. With 2 outs and runners on second and third, Mackanin went to the bullpen. A double switch brought Ken Giles into the game for a four-out save opportunity, something he had never done before. After an 8-pitch battle, Giles struck out Jimmy Rollins looking before a relatively simple ninth, securing the 5-3 victory and his first career four-out save.

August 05, 2015

Pete Mackanin is a good baseball man, a good solider, a straight-shooter, maybe too straight for MLB front offices, but the 64-year old, in his third tenure as an interim manager, has started opening eyes as a possible full-time replacement for Ryne Sandberg.

By far the worst team in baseball in the first half, Mackanin has the Phils 8-1 since the All- Star break, which included a three-game sweep of the contending Cubs and three out of four at home against division rival Atlanta. The emergence of Mikael Franco, Cesar Hernandez, and Rule 5 selection, Odubel Herrea, have to be points in Petey's favor.

Even Domonic Brown's recent stretch has him playing his best ball since the first half of 2013. This 105-game sample size will be the longest of his three interim tenures since managing 80 games for the Cincinnati Reds in 2007, going a respectable 41-39, but still replaced at year's end by Dusty Baker.

Mackanin doesn't have the quirky personality of Joe Maddon, or the law degree of Tony LaRussa, and will never be mistaken for a fiery Lou Pinella, Pete is well, just Pete. A guy with nearly 20-years of coaching under his belt that understands his place, puts his head down and does his job, no matter the role.

Mackanin understands the business side of the game. When his contract was not renewed following the 2012 season, Mackanin went on his merry way, waiting for his next opportunity. And when Philadelphia offered him the 3rd base coaching vacancy under Sandberg, he gladly accepted.

Mackanin's hopes may not have anything to do with the team's results over the last 76 games. Andy McPahil takes over as President in October and Ruben Amaro's fate is first on his to-do list. A new GM would most certainly bring a new manager and entire new coaching staff. Mackanin will once again be looking for work.

And has he has done since 1997, Pete Mackanin will gracefully exit stage left, but not without a very impressive stay as Phils interim manager.